Automatic transfer knitting machine



ATTORNEY April 3, 1956 c. wl MlNToN AUTOMATIC TRANSFER KNITTING MACHINE 7 Sheets-Sheet l Filed Aug. 6, 1951 FIG.

April 3, 1956 c. w. MINToN 2,740,276

AUTOMATIC TRANSFER KNITTING MACHINE Filed Aug. e, 1951 7 sheets-snaai 2 IN VEN TOR.

C. W. MINTON ATTORNEY April 3, 1956 c. w. MINTON AUTOMATIC TRANSFER KNITTING MACHINE 7 Sheets-Sheet 3 Filed Aug. e, 1951 INVENTOR.

C. W MINTON ATTORNEY April 3, 1956 c. w. MINTON 2,740,276

AUTOMATIC TRANSFER KNITTING MACHINE Filed Aug. 6, 1951 7 Sheets-Sheet 4 C. W. MINTON ATTORNEY April 3, 1956 y c, w, MINTON 2,740,276

AUTOMATIC TRANSFER KNITTING MACHINE Filed Aug. 6, 1951 7 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. C. W. MINTON ATTORNEY April 3, 1956 c. WfMlNToN 2,740,276

AUTOMATIC TRANSFER KNITTING MACHINE Filed Aug. 6, 1951 7 Sheets-Shea?I 6 IN VEN TOR. C. W. M INTON April 3, 1956 c. w. MlNToN 2,740,276

AUTOMATIC TRANSFER KNITTING MACHINE Filed Aug. 6, 1951 7 Sheets-Sheet '7 FIG 24 22 I 64) Y] MIA m FIG. 36

IN VEN TOR.

FIG. 37

8 20 c. w MINToN mum! "umm-uml BY 23 WM ATTORNEY United States AUTOMATIC TRANSFER KNITTING MACHlNE Clarence W. Minton, Nashville, Tenn., assigner to May Hosiery Mills, Nashville, Tenn., a corporation of Tennessee Application August 6, 1951, Serial No. 240,464

26 Claims. (Cl. 66-24) This invention relates to textiles and more particularly to a method and apparatus for knitting hosiery.

In the knitting industry particularly in the knitting of hosiery it has been common practice to use rib knitting for the leg and plain knitting for the foot portion. These operations have commonly been performed on two separate machines one for the rib knitting which is termed a ribber and one for the plain knitting which is termed a footer with the knitted fabric being manually transferred from one machine to the other.

As is well known in the art, the rib knitting of hose may be performed on a machine utilizing a plurality of vertically reciprocable needles slidably mounted in grooves in the outer surface of a cylinder. These needles may be termed cylinder needles and which cooperate with a plurality of horizontal or dial needles which reciprocate .radially in grooves in the upper surface of a dial or plate disposed above the upper end of the cylinder, In the vsimplest form of rib knitting the cylinder and dial needles are arranged alternately but any desired combination of cylinder and dial needles may be utilized in order to provide different rib patterns. Plain knitting is performed by the use only of the cylinder needles.

There are many disadvantages in this prior method of Amaking hosiery among them being the fact that it is necessary to maintain a relatively large supply' of ribbed tops in order that the plain knitting machines will always be kept busy. Also there are numerous problems connected with the shades or colors of the yarn utilized since it is almost impossible to knit the topsand foot portions -of the hose from the same dye lot of yarn where this is done on different machines and it is likely that the tops .lot of yarn, consequently, many problems having to do with shading are presented which have contributed materially to the relatively high cost lof production. By production in the prior manner much yarn isv wasted since Yit is necessary for the ribbed top to have extra 'or ex- `cessive length to make it possible for the operator to transn .fer the same to the plain knitting machine. Such extra 4or excessive length is unraveled or raveledoff after the transfer operation is finished andsuch unraveled yarn is discarded or wasted.

One of the important objections to the present method of manually transferring from the rib knitting machine to the plain knitting machine is that a high degree of skill is required of the operator. Such skilled operators are relatively scarce and many persons do not have the necessary aptitude to permit their being trained as transfer operators. Consequently, the cost of such operation is materially increased and there is always the problem of obtaining sutlicient trained operators to maintain production.

VHeretofore numerous attempts have been made to elimf inate the manually transfer operation including a man 2,740,276 Patented Apr. 3, 1856l ice chine which knits the stocking backwards or in other words from the toe to the top. Also relatively expensive special needles have been used which are designed to permit the cylinder needle to engage the loop carried on' the dial needle and most of these required that very close tolerances in manufacturing vbe maintained and also as soon as a relatively small degree of wear had taken place in the parts breakage of needles occurred, stitches would drop and the resulting product was definitely inferior.- These prior art machines present a very real problem of maintenance and much time has been lost due to frequent breakdowns.

It is therefore an object of this invention to provide a method and apparatus for` automatically performing a transfer knitting operation.

Another object of this invention is to provide an automatic transfer knitting apparatus utilizing relatively inexpensive needles and in which it is not necessary to maintain extremely close tolerancesnormal Wear having no effect on the eiiiciency of the apparatus.

Another object of the invention is to provide au automatic transfer knitting apparatus in which the loop is carried by the dial needles is spread or enlarged to permit the cylinder needles to pass through Yand receive the loop from the dial needles in'order to kcomplete the transfer operation. f'

A further object of the invention is to provide an automatic transfer knitting apparatus which will produce knitted hosiery ofy high4 quality and with no apparent change in the knitting whenrcompared with present commonly used manual methods. g

A further objectof the invention is to provide an auto`- matic transfer knitting apparatus which may be economi` cally constructed at a cost only slightly higher than the cost of conventional knitting machines.` i f v i A still further object of the invention isr to provide a method of automatically transferring the stitches from the dial needles in the knitting machine to the cylinder needles thereof in order to produce completely knitted hose -in one automatic operation and on a single machine.

Further objects and advantages ofthe inventionwill be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein:

Fig. l is a fragmentary vertical sectional view showing an automatic transfer knitting machine constructed in accordance with theI present invention;`

Fig. 2, a top plan view of a knitting machine dial utilized with the present invention; y 4

, Fig. 3,` an elevational view thereof;

Fig. 4, a fragmentary bottom plan view thereof;v y Fig. 5, a fragmentary sectional View, in perspective showing the dial and needles disposed ytherein together with the cam means for actuatingthe dial needles during knitting operations and-'during transfer operations; l Fig. 6, a bottom plan view of the dial needle'actuating cams in neutral position;

f Fig. 7 a bottom planview of the dial needle actuating cams, with one cam in position for starting the knitting operation;

Fig. 8, a bottom' plan view of the dial needle actuating in position for starting the transshowing the relative positions of the dial and cylinder needles during a rib knitting operation;

Figs. 15, 16, 17, and 18, schematic views in perspective showing the relative positions of the d ial and cylinder needles during the transfer operation;

Figs. 19, 20, 2l, and 22-elevational views partially in section showing the operation of thecylinderneedles during a transfer operation;

Pig. 23, an end elevational view partially in section showing a conventional dial needle and the position occupied by the stitch loop carried thereby;

' Fig. 24, a top plan view of a dial needle designed for use in the knitting machine of this invention;

' Fig. 25, a side elevational view of the needle shown in Fig. 24;

Fig. 26, a bottom plan view of the needle shown in Fig. v24;

Fig. 27, a sectional viewon the line 27-27 of Fig. 25;

Fig. 28, a top plan view of a modified form of dial needle for use in the knitting machine of this invention;

Fig. 29, a side elevational view of the needle shown in Fig. V28; l

' 'Fig 30, a bottom plan View of the needle shown in Fig. 28;

Fig. 31, an end elevational view of the needle shown in Fig. 28; Y Fig. 32, a top plan view of a further modified form of needle for use in the knitting machine of this invention; Fig. 33, a side elevational view of the needle shown in Fig. 32; Y

Fig. 34, a bottom plan view ofthe needle shown in Fig. 32j

Fig. 35, an end elevational view of the needle shown in Fig. '32;

Fig. 36, a View in perspective showing a cylinder needle for use in the knitting machine of this invention; and

",Fig. 37, a Sectional view on the line 37'-37 of Fig. 36. Briefly stated the invention comprises means whereby a conventional knitting kmachine may be converted to a transfer knitting machine in which the loops carried by the dial needles are automatically transferred to the cylinder needles. The machine includes the conventional cylinder and needles carried thereby and a specially formed dial for carrying and operating the dial needles. This dial incorporates the usual grooves for carrying the needles but these grooves are machined at an incline soI that the loop carried by these needles-A is spread apart or enlarged a greater distance than vthe' normal thickness of the needle. In conventional operations the needles are disposed with their wider dimensionsfupright or verticalY and the loops carried by such needles are separated onlyby thethickness of the needle.

With the needles disposed atan incline in the rpresent invention the loops will b e separated a Vdistance determined by the Width of the needles and the particular degree of incline utilized. This incline lwill normally be from approximately to 20 .from,thefverticalandwill permit the 4formation of a relatively wide loop which serves to receive the cylinder needle when itis 'desired i to transfer from the dial needleslto the cylinder needles.

Means is provided in the form of a cam for actuating the dial needles when it is desired to transfer the stitches therefrom to -the cylinder needles and Vsuitable control kmeans is provided for initiating this operation at the which serves to receive and rotatably support a gear 11 having an upstanding hollow hub 12. Mounted upon Vthe f hub 12 and rotatable therewith is a cylinder 13"which is secured against rotation relative to the gear 11 by pins 14 extending through the gear 11 and into apertures in the cylinder 13. Gearll is drivenby a gear ISfmonnted upon a drive shaft 16 whichmay be actuated from any i suitable source of power. v

Cylinder 13 is provided with the usual grooves 17 for receiving cylinder needles 18 which are reciprocated vertically in the grooves 17 by conventional cam means not shown. Cylinder needles 18 as shown in Figs. 36 and 37 may comprise an elpngated shank portion 19, a cam engaging butt 20 extending at right angles to the shank portions 19 at one end thereof, a reducedportion 21 connecting the shank 19 with a hook 22 the reduced portion 21 being chamfered Aor beveled as at 23 fora purpose to be later described. Pivoted slightly below the hook 22 is a latch 24 which serves to close the hook 22 when removing a stitch from the reduced portion 21 of the cylinder needle 18. Withwthe exception of the beveled or chamfered portion A23 the cylinder needle 18 is constructed in substantially the same manner as conventional cylinder needles.

A bracket 2S is pivotally mounted on an upstanding portion of the frarneorbase end and bracket "25" servesto receive and support a sleeve 26`having an enlarged portion 27 at the lower end thereof to which isI secured by screw threaded fastening means or the like 28 acar'n supporting plate 29.` VSleeve 26 also serves to rotatably receive a-shaft 30 on the lower end of which isxed, a dial 31. The specific structure o f dial 31 will be 'presa ently described.` Fixedto the upper end' of shaft 30 is a bevel gear 32 which meshes with a bevel'gear 33 carried by' a shaftv 34 journaled in bearings 35 on the bracket 25. The opposite end of shaft 34 carries labevel gear 36 which meshes with a bevel gear37fcar'ried 'by a vertical shaft 38 journaled inbearings 39 mounted ion the framelt).` Shaft 3S'isconnected'to a suitable power v source and serves to drive the dial *31? Due to the pivotal mounting oilbracket 25 the dial31 and associated mechanisnrmay be moved out of 'the' way when it isA necessary to make repairs or Aadjustments to the mechanism and as isshown'in Fig. l bracketZS and mechanism carried thereby'may be moved to operative position with the bevel-gear 36 engaging the bevel gear 37 and bracket 25 maybe latched inoperative position byl a latch bolt 40Aslidably mounted inl a bracket41secured n to thev frame 10, latchbolt 40 being reciprocated by an eccentric pint 42. The upperendbf` latch bolt 4t) isfprovided with a rotatably mounted button 43 which is' se cured tothe bolt 40 by screw threaded fastening'means or thelike 44, button 43 when rotated to one position .passing'th'rougha slot 45 in a memberl attached' to :the

bracket-25`and` when button 43-is rotated 90 the sanie will serve to engage the'upper surface of member 46and upon rotationi of eccentric pin 42 vto move the 'latchfbolt lUJ-'dow'nwardly, `the bracketZS: and associated mechanistn will .be locked .in operativeiposition. :i

Withparticular reference' to (Figs. 2k to 4 the dial. 31 comprises'1 adislc 47 having .ai plurality of radial vgrooves formed in theupper. surface thereof; ldisk47 havingaa den' traljhub 49 providedwith an apertureSO for'receivin'gthe shaft30. l Hub 491s also provided with a ke'yway S1 4for v engaginga'key 52 received inra recess in vth'e shaft 30 and in the 'oppositeside of the hub @there is provided a' set screw `53` for securely clampingl the hub 49 and the dial 31 on the shaft'30. j As best shown iii-Fig. 3, the grooves 48 in the uppersurfaee ofrdial 31' areinclined lfrom theverticaland serve to receive and position dial needlesthefiein in a manner and for a purpose'to`be"presentlydescribed. As best showninfFigr'Z, a: y'recess 54is"provi dedririfthe upper dialvsurfac'elof the outer end of -`each radial groove' 48 to provide clearance fortherieedle.'l y Asbest shown in Figs.f1`,"5, 6, 7, andfS the'cam'supporting plate29 serves-to supportfrnovable needleactutifl ing cams 55, and5'7..` -Plate'f29likewisecarriesixed canisd and S9 which v"serve toreciprocate'the dial needles in :a direction opposite toA that caused bythev earns 55536; and 57, ACams 55, 56,:and 57 are mounted upon shafts extendingv throughk enlarged pbrtionZjlfcarried fsleeve 26 and the shafts are actuated by levers 60 which are pivotally 'connected to cam actuating arms 61. Arms 61 are operated by suitable mechanism which will causeV actuation of the cams 55, 56, and 57 in accordance with the pattern being knitted by the machine. Cams 55, 56, and 57 cause outward movement of the needles received in the grooves 48 of dial 31 and fixed cams 58, and 59 caused inward movement of such needles in a manner to be presently described.

Several different forms of dial needles 62 are shown in the drawing and these needles will be described with particular reference to Figs. 24 to 35 inclusive. As shown in Figs. 24, 25, 26, and 27 needles 62 may comprise a relatively wide body portion 63 having at one end thereof an offset resilient tang or tail 64. When needle 62 is received in grooves 48 of dial 31 the tang 64 is substantially straight and serves to provide a suicient tension to retain the needle 62 in proper position in the dial groove 48. The body 63 of needle 62 is provided with a butt 65 which may be either of the length shown in full lines in Fig. 25, or may be somewhat longer as shown in dotted lines in the same figure. Also, body 63 of needle 62 is provided with a tapered concave groove 66 the purpose of which will be presently described. At the opposite end of needle 62 from the tang 64 there is provided a reduced portion 67 terminating in a hook 68. In order to close the hook 68 during knitting operations, a latch 69 is mounted on a pivot 70 on the reduced portion 67, the latch 69 having a forward hood 71 which, as shown in Fig. 27, partially embraces the inner end of the hook 68 for a purpose to be later described. At the point of juncture between the body 63 and reduced portion 67 there is provided a shoulder 72 connected to the reduced portion by an inclined surface 72' which together with the shoul-l der 72 serves to engage a loop of yarn in a manner and for a purpose which will be described in connection with the description of the operation of the apparatus.

In Figs. 28, 29, 30 and 3l, there is shown a slightly modified form of dial needle 62 which is identical in every respect to the needle described above except that the reduced portion 67 which terminates in the hook 68 is provided with a bend or twist 73 in order that the hook 68 will occupy a vertical position in spite of the fact that the body 63 of the needle 62 is inclined to the vertical by reason of the inclined grooves 48 in the dial 31.

A still further modified form of dial needle 62 is shown in Figs. 32, 33, 34, and 35 and in this form the only change from the needle described above in connection with Figs. 24 to 27 is the fact that the butt 65 is bent as clearly shown in Fig. 35 to occupy a vertical position when the body 63 of the needle 62 is received in the inclined groove 48 of dial 31.

The disposition and operation of the dial needles 62 is best shown in Figs. 5 to l1 and from an inspection of these figures it will be seen that the needles 62 are disposed in grooves 48 of the dial 31 for radial sliding movement, such movement being 'effected during the knitting operation by cam 55 and during the transfer operation by the cams 56 and 57. One half of the needles disposed in the dial grooves are provided with relatively long butts 65 and the other half are provided with short butts. The long and short butts are necessary in order to properly carry out the transfer operation as will later appear.

The dial 31 with needles 62 disposed in the grooves 48 thereof rotates in a counterclockwise direction when viewed from the top of the apparatus and cam supporting plate 29 is stationary. With the cams S5, 56, and 57 in the position shown in Fig. 6 the needles 62 will be retracted to their innermost position in the dial 31 and in this neutral position the dial needles 62 will not operate to knit fabric. This is the position which the dial needles 62 will occupy after the transfer operation and duringthe plain knitting step.

When it is desired to knit the ribbed portion of a sock, cam 55 will be moved to the position shown in Figs. 7 and 9 by operation of the. appropriate arm .61 at which time needles 62 will be progressively moved outwardly in the grooves 48 of dial 31 by engagement of the butts 65 with the edge of cam 55. As shown in Fig. 9 the needles 62 move outwardly until they have passed the outer end of cam 55 at which time the butts 65 engage fixed cam 58 carried by plate 29 which serves to move the needles 62 inwardly to retracted position. The needles 62 remain in this position until they have completed one revolution when the butts 65 again engage cam 55 to move the needles outwardly and form another stitch.

During the rib knitting operation the cylinder needles 18 which are located directly below the dial needles 62 are idle the rib portion of the sock being formed by every other cylinder needle and by the dial needles. Upon completion of this ribbed portion it is necessary to transfer the stitches which are carried by the dial needles 62 to the previously idle cylinder needles 18. This operation is accomplished by means of the cams 56 and 57 in a manner as shown in Figs. 8, 10 and 1l.

As will be seen from an inspection of the above figures cams 56 and 57 operate in a manner similar to knitting cam 55 with the exception that during the transfer operation the needles 62 are projected a greater distance out of the dial than they were during the knitting operation. As previously stated, one half of the needles 62 in dial 31 are provided with high butts 65 and the remaining needles are provided with low butts. As shown in Fig. 10 at the start of the transfer operation cam 5'/ is moved outwardly by operation of the proper arm 61 cam 57 serving to engage only those needles provided with high butts. As the dial 31 rotates carrying the needles 62 in a counterclockwise direction as viewed from the top of the machine the high butts 65 contact the edge of cam 57 and the needles 62 are moved outwardly to the position shown in Fig. l0. The needles 62 are retracted into the dial grooves by engagement of the butts 65 with fixed cam 59 carried by plate 29. Upon completion of one halt` of a revolution of the dial 31 during the transfer operation, the cam 56 is moved outwardly as shown in Fig. 11 this cam serving to engage the needles 62 provided with low butts and thus complete the transfer operation by transferring the stitches from all of the dial needles 62 to the alternate cylinder needle 18. Upon completion of the transfer operation the cams 56 and 57 are moved to the neutral position shown in Fig. 6 and the dial needles 62 are not utilized again until the plain knitting of the sock has been completed and it is desired to start the rib top of another sock. Stitch loops 74 engage the reduced portion 67 of needles 62 and a strand of yarn 75 is engaged by the hooks 22 of alternate cylinder needles 18. In the position shown in Fig. l2 the dial needle 62 is projected to cast off or knitting position at which time the loop 74 is to the rear of the opened latch 69. Upon retraction of the dial needle 62 into the dial 31 the hook 68 engages the strand of yarn 75 and pulls the same through a loop 74 which as best shown in Fig. 13 slides over the closed latch 69 to the position shown in Fig. 14 the strand of yarn serving to form the loop of a second stitch. lt is to be understood that loops of yarn are likewise received on alternate cylinder needles 18 and that stitches are formed by pulling addition loops of the strand of yarn 75 through the loops received on the needles 18 in the same manner as that described above in connection with the dial needle 62. During this operation, the cylinder needle 18 located between the outer cylinder needles as shown in Figs. l2, 13, and 14 remains in a lowered inoperative position as shown in these figures the rib knitting operation being performed on the alternate cylinder needles and all of the dial needles 62.

When it is desired to transfer the stitch loops 74 carried by the dial needles 62 to the previously idle cylinder needles 18 it is necessary for such cylinder needles to move upwardly and pass through the loops 74 carried bythe dial needle 62 in i'dr receive the saine on thelshank of the cylinder needle below the latch 24. The instant invention is designed te facilitate this operation by spreading the loop 74 to provide ample space for passage of the cylinder needle 18. Such spreading of the loops 74 is accomplished by the inclined disposition of the dial needles 62 and their action in connection therewith is best shown in Figs. 19 to 22. As will be seen from an inspection of these figures the loop 74 passes over the inclined needle and due to such inclination the effective width of the needle is increased thereby increasing the width of the loop. This can be readily understood when compared with Fig. 23 in which is shown a conventional needle disposed in a vertical position and with a loo`p74 disposed thereon. Obviously, such loop is only separated by the thickness of the needle 62 which results in insullicient space being provided for passage of the cylinder needle 18 during a transfer operation. The transverse dimension of the loop "i4 received on the needle 62 will be substantially equal to the projected width of the inclined needle 62.

The transfer operation will now be described with reference to Figs. l5 to 22 inclusive. In Fig. l5 the dial needle 62 is partially projected to initiate the transfer operation with the loop 74 moving rearwardly on the reduced portion 67 and up the inclined surface 72 to occupy a position as shown in Fig. 16 with the loop 74 engaging the shoulder 72 to pull the loop outwardly of the dial and stretch the same slightly. At this time the loop as clearly shown in Fig. 16 is disposed across the concave tapered groove 66 in the dial needle 62 in a position approaching parallelism Withthe longitudinal axis of the needle. Also as seen in Fig. the previously idle cylinder needle 18 has started to move upwardly and as shown in Fig. 16 this cylinder needle has partially passed through the loop 74. The cylinder needle con- .l

tinues to move upwardly until it reaches the position shown in Fig. 17 at which time the loop 74 carried by the dial needle 62 is disposed about the shank 21 of the cylinder needle 18 below the latch 24. Also as shown in Fig. 17 the dial needle 62 is partially retracted and the loop 74 is shown as about to pass off such `needle over the llatch 69. On completion of the inward movement of dial needle 62 the loop 74 formally carried thereby will be entirely disengaged therefrom and received on the shank 21 of the cylinder needle 18. Upon complete withdrawal of the dial needle 62 the cylinder needle 18 moves downwardly and at the same time the hook 22 thereof engages the strand of yarn 7S and pulls a loop of the same through the loop 74 just transferred to this needle from the dial needle and forms a further stitch. This initiates the plain knitting operation and such operation continues for the desired length of fabric.

The operation of the cylinder needle 18 during the transfer operation is best shown in Figs. 19 to 22 inclusive, Fig. 19 showing the relative positions of the cylinder needles 18 and dial needles 62 prior to the transfer operation and Fig. 2O showing their relative positions at the start of such operation with the hook 22 of the cylinder needle 18 engaging the concave tapered groove 66 in the inclined dial needle 62 just prior to passing through the loop. Fig. 2l shows 'the cylinder needle 18 after passing through the loop 74 and the manner in which the cylinder needle is deflected by the inclined surface of the dial needle 62. Fig. 22 shows the cylinder needle 18 in its extreme uppermost position and also shows the purpose and operation of the chamfered or beveled edge 23 of fthe needle 18. l

Since the needle 18 is dellected by the `inclined dial needle 62 and since the cylinder needle 1S passes upwardly and engages the dial needle 62 within the concave tapered groove 66 and further since the dial needles 62 are retracted when the cylinder needle 18 is in the position shown in Fig. 22 the beveled or chamfered edge 2 3 isprovided to,prevent,damage lto the needles during the retraction of dial needles '62. If a sharp Vedge ywere 8 presented bythe' cylinder needle 1 8 the's'arn'e would tend to bite into the edge of nee'dl 62 adjacent the ycontraint: groove66 and cause damage thereto. Likewise the chainfered or beveled surface 23 prevents damage to the latch 69 of the dial needle 62 during retracting movement thereof, since obviously this latch will be engaged by the edge of cylinder needle 18 when in the position shown in Fig; 22. A

As will be seen from an inspection of Fig. 17 the loops 74 in passing over the latch l69 of dial needle 62 will tend to pull the samek side ways or transversely of -the` needle since there is an appreciable downward pull on the vloop 74 and when utilizing the form of dial needle shown in Figs. 24 to 27 Athe latch is inclined with respect to the vertical and consequently a downward pull on the loop 74 would exert a transverse bending force on the latch 69. Consequently the hood 71 as best shown in Figs. 25 and 27 is provided to reinforcethe latch 69 since with the hood 71 in engagement with the end of hook 68 a support therefor is provided to prevent lateral movement of the latch 69.

AIf desire'dthe dial needle '62 shown in Figs. 28 vto 3l may be utilized in which case the latch and hook portion of the needle is twisted to be disposed in a vertical position and in such position, of course, the downward tension on the loop 7 4 will not tend to move the latch 69 laterally of the needle. Consequently with this form of the needle it is not necessary to provide a hood to assist in supporting the latch 69.

lt will be seen that by the above described invention there has been provided a relatively simple and economically constructed machine for automatically transferring stitch loops from dial needles to cylinder needles when it is desired to change from rib knitting to plain knit-ting and one in which relatively inexpensive dial needles may be utilized. Extremely close tolerances need not be maintained in manufacture and the simplicity of the device materially contributes to long wear and lack of frequent breakdowns.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the invention without departing from the spirit and scope thereof and therefore the invention is not limited by that which is shown in the drawings and described in the specication but only as indicated in the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In an automatic transfer knitting machine a base, a cylinder rotatably mounted on said base, vertical grooves in the outer surface of said cylinder, cylinder needles slidably disposed in said grooves, certain of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a rib knitting operation and all of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a plain knitting operation, a dial disposed above the upper end of said cylinder and mounted for rotation about a vertical axis, radial grooves in the upper surface of said dial, dial needles slidably'disposed in said radial grooves, means operable upon rotation of said dial to reciprocate said dial needles during a rib knitting operation and to retract said dial needles to an inoperative position during a plain knitting operation, said radial grooves and said dial needles being inclined to the vertical whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be substantially equal to the projected width of said Vdial needles, eachrof said dialneedles comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a cam engaging butt extending from one edge of said body, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on-said reduced portion and engageable with said hook t-o close the same, a hood on saidlatch partially embracing -said hook whenin closed position to prevent bending of said latch out of theplane of said hook, a shoulder on the end of-said body adjacentsaid reduced portion, an upwardly inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulder andere and a taperedconcave groove in the lower inclined surface of said body adjacent said shoulder, and cam means movable into progressive engagement with the butts of said dial needles to progressively move said dial needles outwardly of said dial a greater distance than during a rib knitting operation whereby a stitch loop received on said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued outward movement of said dial needles said loop will be disposed across said concave groove in a position approaching the horizontal thereby permitting upward movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the walls of said concave grooves and through the loops disposed across said grooves whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

2. In an automatic transfer knitting machine a base, a cylinder rotatably mounted on said base, vertical grooves in the outer surface of said cylinder, cylinder needles slidably disposed in said grooves, certain of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a rib knitting operation and all of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a plain knitting operation, a dial disposed above the upper end of said cylinder and mounted for rotation about a vertical axis, radial grooves in the upper surface of said dial, dial needles slidably disposed in said radial grooves, means operable upon rotation of said dial to reciprocate said dial needles during a rib knitting operation and to retract said dial needles to an inoperative position during a plain knitting operation, said radial grooves and said dial needles being inclined to the vertical, whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be directly proportional to the angle of inclination of said dial needles, each of said dial needles comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a cam engaging butt extending from one edge of said body, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a hood on said latch partially embracing said hook when in closed position to prevent bending of said latch out of the plane of said hook, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion, an upwardly inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulder and a tapered concave groove n the lower inclined surface of said body adjacent said shoulder and cam means movable into progressive engagement with the butts of said dial needles to progressively move said dial needles outwardly of said dial a greater distance than during a rib knitting operation, whereby a stitch loop received on said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued outward movement of said dial needles said loop will be disposed across said concave groove in a position approaching the horizontal thereby permitting upward movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the walls of said concave grooves and through the loops disposed across said grooves whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

3. An apparatus as defined in claim l in which a portion of said cylinder needle which contacts the wall of said concave groove is chamfered in order to provide a smooth sliding engagement therebetween.

4. An apparatus as defined in claim 2 in which a portion of said cylinder needles which contacts the wall of said concave groove is chamfered in order to provide a smooth sliding engagement therebetween.

5. In an automatic transfer knitting machine a base, a cylinder rotatably mounted on said base, vertical grooves in the outer surface of said cylinder, cylinder needles disposed in said grooves, certain of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a rib knitting operation and all of said cylinder needles reciprocating during' .a plain knitting operation, a dial disposed above theup'p'er end of said cylinder and mounted for rotation about a vertical axis, radial grooves in the upper surfaceof said dial, dial needles slidably disposed in said radial grooves, means operable upon rotation of said dialto reciprocate said dial needles during a ribknitting operation and to retract said dial needles to an inoperative position during a plain knitting operation, said radial grooves and said dial needles being inclined to the vertical, whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be substantially equal to the projected width of said dial needles, each of said dial needles comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a cam engaging butt extending from one edge of said body a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating. in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion, an upwardly inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulderand a tapered concave groove in the lower inclined surface of said body adjacent said shoulder and cam means movable into progressive engagement with the butts of said dial needles to progressively move said dial needles outwardly of said dial a greater distance than during a rib knitting operation, whereby a stitch loop received on said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued outward movement of said dial needles said loop will be disposed across said concave groove in a position approaching the horizontal thereby permitting upward movement of certain of said Cylinder needles into engagement with the walls of said concave grooves and through the loops disposed across said grooves whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

6. In an automatic transfer knitting machine a base, a cylinder rotatably mounted on said base, vertical grooves in the outer surface of said cylinder, cylinder needles slidably disposed in said grooves, certain of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a rib knitting operation and all of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a plain knitting operation, a dial disposed above the upper end of said cylinder and mounted for rotation about a vertical axis, radial grooves in the upper surface of said dial, dial needles slidably disposed in said radial grooves, means operable upon rotation of said dial to reciprocate said dial needles during a rib knitting operation and to retract said dial needles to an inoperative position during a plain knitting operation, said radial grooves and said dial needles being inclined to the vertical, whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be directly proportional to the angle of inclination of said dial needles, each of said dial needles comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a cam engaging butt extending from one edge of said body, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion, an upwardly inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulder and a tapered concave groove in the lower inclined surface of said body, adjacent said shoulder and cam means movable into progressive engagement with the butts of said dial needles to progressively move said dial needles outwardly of said dial a greater distance than during a rib knitting operation, whereby a stitch loop received on said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued outward movement of said dial needles andere' 11 said loop will b'e disposed across said concave groove in a position 'approaching the horizontal thereby permitting upward movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the walls of said concave 'grooves and through the loops disposed across said grooves whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

7. In an automatic transfer knitting machine a base, a cylinder rotatably mounted on said base, vertical grooves in the outer surface of said cylinder, cylinder needles sldably disposed in said grooves, certain of said cylinder needles during a rib knitting operation, and all of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a plain knitting operation, a dial disposed above the upper end of said cylinder and mounted for rotation about a vertical axis, radial grooves in the upper surface of said dial, dial needles slidably disposed in said radial grooves, means operable upon rotation of said dial to reciprocate said dial needles during a rib knitting operation and to retract said dial needles to an inoperative position during a plain knitting operation, said radial grooves and said dial needles being inclined to the vertical whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be substantially equal to the projected width of said dial needles, each of said dial needles comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a cam engaging butt extending from one edge of said body, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion and a tapered concave groove in the lower inclined surface of said body adjacent said shoulder and cam means movable into progressive engagement with the butts of said dial needles to progressively move said dial needles outwardly of said dial a greater distance than during a rib knitting operation, whereby a stitch loop received on said reduced portion will move into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued outward movement of said dial needles, said loop will be disposed across said concave groove in a position approaching the horizontal thereby permitting upward movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the walls of said concave grooves and through the loops disposed across said grooves whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

8. In an automatic transfer knitting machine a base, a cylinder rotatably mounted on said base, vertical grooves in the outer surface of said cylinder, cylinder needles slidably disposed in said grooves, certain of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a rib knitting operation, and all of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a plain knitting operation, a dial disposed above the upper end of said cylinder and mounted for rotation about a vertical axis, radial grooves in the upper surface of said dial, dial needles slidably disposed in said radial grooves, means operable upon rotation of said dial to reciprocate said dial needles during a rib knitting operation and to retract said dial needles to an inoperative 'position during a plain knitting operation, said radial grooves and said dial needles being inclined to the vertical whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be directly proportional to the angle of inclination of said dial needles, each of said dial needles comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a cam engaging butt extending from one edge of said body, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion and a tapered concave groove inthe lower inclined surface of said body adjacent said shoulder and cam means 'movable into "progressive engagement with the'butts of said dial needles toprogres-i through the loops disposed across said grooveswhereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles,

.9. In an automatic transfer knitting machine a base, a cylinder rotatably mounted-on said base, vertical grooves in the outer surface of said cylinder, cylinder needles slidably disposed in said grooves, certain of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a rib knitting operation and all of said cylinder needles reciprocating during a plain knitting operation, a dial disposed above the upper end of said cylinder and mounted for rotation about a vertical axis, radial grooves in the upper surface of said dial, dial needles slidably disposed in said radial grooves, means operable upon rotation of said dial to reciprocate said dial needles during a rib knitting operation and to retract said dial needles to an inoperative position during a plainknitting operation, said radial grooves and said dial needles being inclined to the vertical whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be substantially equal to the projected width of said dial needles, each of said dial needles comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a cam engaging butt extending from one edge of said body, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion and cam means movable into progressive engagement with the butts of said dial needles to progressively move said dial needles outwardly of said dial a greater distance than during a rib knitting operation, whereby a stitch loop received on said reduced portion will move into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued outward movement of said dial needles said loop will be disposed in a position approaching the horizontal thereby permitting kupward movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the lower inclined surface of said body` and through said loops whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

l0. In an automatic transfer knitting machine having a cylinder, cylinder needles carried by said cylinder and reciprocable axially thereof, a dial disposed adjacent one end of said cylinder at right angles to theaxis thereof, dial needles carried by said dial and Vreciproca'ole .outwardly and toward the axis of said dial, said .dial needles being inclined to the axis of said dial, whereby the trans-- verse .dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be substantially equal tothe projected width of said dial needles, each of said dial needles comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a butt extending from one edge of said body, a reduced portion extending .from vone end oflsaid body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a hood on said latch partially embracing said hook when in closed position to prevent'bending said latch out of theplane of said hook, :a

shoulder on the .end'of said'body adjacent said reduced portion, an .inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to saidshoulder anda tapered concavegroove'in therinclinedsurface of Vsaid body toward said zdial l:and

adjacent saidzshoulder and rneansmovable intojprogres.

sive engagement with the butts of said dial needles to 13 progressively move said dial needles outwardly of said dial, whereby a stitch loop received on said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued outward movement of said dial needles said loop will be disposed across said concave groove in a position approaching right angles to the axis of said dial thereby permitting axial movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the walls of said concave grooves and through the loops disposed across said grooves whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles` l1. In an automatic transfer knitting machine having a cylinder, cylinder needles carried by said cylinder and reciprocable axially thereof, a dial disposed adjacent one end of said cylinder at right angles to the axis thereof, dial needles carried by said dial and reciprocable outwardly and toward the axis of said dial, said dial needles being inclined to the axis of said dial whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be substantially equal to the projected width of said dial needles, each of said dial needles compris ing an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a butt extending from one edge of said body, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion, an inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulder and a tapered concave groove in the lower inclined surface of said body toward said dial and adjacent said shoulder and means movable into progressive engagement with the butts of said dial needles to progressively move said dial needles outwardly of said dial, whereby a stitch loop received on said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued outward movement of said dial needles said loop will be disposed across said concave groove in a position approaching right angles to the axis of said dial thereby permitting axial movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with said concave grooves and through the loops disposed across said grooves whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

12. In an automatic transfer knitting machine having a cylinder, cylinder needles carried by said cylinder and reciprocable axially thereof, a dial disposed adjacent one end of said cylinder at right angles to the axis thereof, dial needles carried by said dial and reciprocable outwardly and toward the axis of said dial, said dial needles being inclined to the axis of said dial whereby the transverse dimension of Stitch loops received on said dial needles will be substantially equal to the projected width of said dial needles, each of said dial needles comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a butt extending from one edge of said body, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion and a tapered concave groove in the inclined surface of said body toward said dial and adjacent said shoulder and means mov able into progressive engagement with the butts of said dial needles to progressively move said dial needles outwardly of said dial, whereby a stitch loop received on said reduced portion will move into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued outward movement of said dial needles said loop will be disposed across said concave groove ina position approaching right angles to the axis of said dial thereby permitting axial movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the walls of said concave grooves and through the loops disposed across said grooves'whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried'thereby will be trans' ferred to said certain cylinder needles.

13. In an automatic transfer knitting machine having a cylinder, cylinder needles carried by said cylinder and reciprocable axially thereof, a dial disposed adjacent one end of said cylinder at right angles to the axis thereof, dial needles carried by said dial and reciprocable outwardly and toward the axis of said dial, said dial needles being inclined to the axis of said dial whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be substantially equal to the projected width of said dial needles, each of said dial needles comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a butt extending from one edge of said body, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion and means movable into progressive engagement with the butts of said dial needles to progressively move said dial needles out-v wardly of the dial whereby a stitch loop received on said reduced portion will move into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued outward movement of said dial needles said loop will be disposed in a position approaching right angles to the axis of said dial thereby permitting axial movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the inclined surfaces of said bodies facing said cylinder and through said loops whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

14. In an automatic transfer knitting machine having a cylinder, cylinder needles carried by said cylinder and reciprocable axially thereof, a dial disposed adjacent one end of said cylinder at right angles to the axis thereof, dial needles carried by said dial and reciprocable out wardly and toward the axis of said dial, said dial needles being inclined to the axis of said dial, whereby the transversey dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be substantially equal to the projected width of said dial needles, each of said dial needles having a shoulder thereon whereby upon outward movement of said dial needles a stitch loop carried thereby will move into engagement with said shoulder and be disposed in a position approaching right angles to the axis of said dial thereby permitting axial movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the inclined surfaces of said needles facing said cylinder and through said loops whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

15. In an automatic transfer knitting machine having a cylinder, cylinder needles carried by said cylinder and reciprocable axially thereof, a dial disposed adjacent one end of said cylinder at right angles to the axis thereof, dial needles carried by said dial and reciprocable outwardly and toward the axis of said dial, said dial needles being inclined to the axis of said dial whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be directly proportional to the angle of inclination of said dial needles, each of said dial needles having a shoulder thereon whereby upon outward movement of said dial needles a stitch loop carried thereby will move into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued outward movement of said dial needles said loop will be disposed in a position approaching right angles to the axis of said dial thereby permitting axial movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the inclined surfaces of said needles facing said cylinder and through said loops whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will bev transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

16. In an automatic transfer knitting machine having a cylinder, cylinder needles carried by said cylinder and reciprocable' laxially thereof, a dial disposed adjacent one end of said cylinder at right angles to the axis thereof, dial needles carried by said dial and reciprocable outwardly and toward the axis of said dial, said dial needles being inclined to the axis of said dial whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be substantially equal to the projected width of said dial needles, thereby permitting axial movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the inclined surfaces of said dial needles facing said cylinder and through said loops whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

i7. In an automatic transfer knitting machine having a cylinder, cylinder needles carried by said cylinder and reciprocable axially thereof, a dial disposed adjacent one end of said cylinder at right angles to the axis thereof, dial needles carried by said dial and reciprocable outwardly and toward the axis of said dial, said dial needles being inclined to the axis of said dial whereby the transverse dimension of stitch loops received on said dial needles will be directly proportional to the angle of inclination of said dial needles, thereby permitting axial movement of certain of said cylinder needles into engagement with the inclined surfaces of said needles facing said cylinder and through said loops whereby upon retraction of said dial needles the loops carried thereby will be transferred to said certain cylinder needles.

. 15., the verticalsaid hook will occupya vertical position, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, va shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion 18. A dial needle for use in an automatic transfer knitting machine comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a butt extending from one edge of said body, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, said reduced portion being twisted about the longitudinal axis thereof, whereby when said body occupies a position inclined to the vertical said hook will occupy a vertical position, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion, an inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulder and a tapered concave groove in one side face of said body adjacent said shoulder, whereby upon longitudinal movement of said needle a stitch loop carried by said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued movement of said needle said loop will be disposed across said concave groove in a position approaching parallelism with the longitudinal axis of said needle.

19. A dial needle for use in an automatic transfer knitting machine comprising an elongated body, a reduced portion extending from one end` of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, said reduced portion being twisted about the longitudinal axis thereof, whereby when said body occupies a position inclined to the vertical said hook will occupy a vertical position, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on .the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion, aninclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulder and a tapered concave groove in one side face of said body adjacent said shoulder, whereby upon longitudinal movement of said needle a stitch loop carried by said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued movement of said needle said loop will be disposed across said concave groove in a position approaching parallelism with the longitudinal axis of said needle.

" and an inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulder whereby upon longitudinal movement of said needle a stitch loop carried by said reduced portion willmove up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued movement of said needle said loop will be disposed in a position approaching parallelism with the longitudinal axis of said needle.

2l. A. dial needle for use in an automatic transfer knitting machine comprising an elongated body, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, said reduced portion being twisted about the longitudinal axis thereof, whereby when said body occupies a position inclined to the vertical said hook will occupy a vertical position, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same and a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion whereby upon longitudinal movement of said needle a stitch loop carried by said reduced portion will move into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued movement of said needle said loop will be disposed in a position approaching parallelism with the longitudinal axis of said needle.

22. A dial needle for use in an automatic transfer knitting machine comprising an elongated relatively thin body of appreciable width, a butt extending from one edge of said body, the plane of said butt being at an angle to the plane of said body, whereby when said body occupies a position inclined to the vertical said butt will occupy a vertical position, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a hood on said latch partially embracing said hook when in closed position to prevent bending of said latch out of the plane of said hook, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion, an inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulder and a tapered concave groove in one side face of said body adjacent said shoulder whereby upon longitudinal movement of said needle a stitch loop carried by said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued movement of said needle said loop will be disposed across said concave groove in a position approaching parallelism with the longitudinal axis of said needle..

23. A dial needle for use in an automatic transfer knitting machine comprising an elongated body, a butt extending from one edge of said body, the plane of said butt being at an angle to the plane of said body whereby when said body occupies a position inclined to the vertical said butt will occupy a vertical position, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a hood on said Alatch partially embracing saidihook when in closed position to prevent bending of said latch out of the plane of said hook, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion, an inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulder and a tapered concave groove in one side face of said body adjacent said shoulder whereby upon longitudinal movement of said needle a stitch loop carried by said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued movement of said needle said loop will be disposed across said concave groove in a position approaching parallelism with the longitudinal axis of said needle.

24. A dial needle for use in an automatic transfer knitting machine comprising an elongated body, a butt extending from one edge of said body, the plane of said butt being at an angle to the plane of said body, whereby when said body occupies a position inclined to the vertical said butt will occupy a vertical position, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion, an inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulder, and a tapered concave groove in one side face of said body adjacent said shoulder, whereby upon longitudinal movement of said needle a stitch loop carried by said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued movement of said needle said loop will be disposed across said concave groove in a position approaching parallelism with the longitudinal axis of said needle.

25. A dial needle for use in an automatic transfer knitting machine comprising an elongated body, a butt extending from one edge of said body, the plane of said butt being at an angle to the plane of said body, whereby when said body occupies a position inclined tothe vertical said butt will occupy a vertical position, a reduced portion extending from one end of said body and terminating in a yarn engaging hook, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same, a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion and an inclined surface extending from said reduced portion to said shoulder, whereby upon longitudinal movement of said needle a stitch loop carried by said reduced portion will move up said inclined surface into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued movement of said needle said loop will be disposed in a position approaching parallelism with the longitudinal axis of said needle.

26. A dial needle for use in an automatic transfer knitting machine comprising an elongated body, a butt extending from one edge of said body, the plane of said butt being at an angle to the plane of said body, whereby when said body occupies a position inclined to the vertical said butt will occupy a vertical position, a latch pivotally mounted on said reduced portion and engageable with said hook to close the same and a shoulder on the end of said body adjacent said reduced portion, whereby upon longitudinal movement of said needle a stitch loop carried by said reduced portion will move into engagement with said shoulder and upon continued movement of said needle said loop will be disposed in a position approaching parallelism with the longitudinal axis of said needle.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 597,092 Sturgess Jan. 1l, 1898 836,058 Vaughan Nov. 13, 1906 1,035,656 Swinglehurst Aug. 13, 1912 2,074,973 Smith et al. Mar. 23, 1937 2,079,298 McAdams May 4, 1937 2,111,477 McAdams Mar. 15, 1938 2,181,105 Sirmay Nov. 21, 1939 2,188,125 Wigley Jan. 23, 1940 2,240,761 Cloutier May 6, 1941 2,292,940 Holmes et al. Aug. 11, 1942 2,326,694 Sirmay Aug. 10, 1943 2,385,611 Cloutier Sept. 25, 1945 2,575,365 Sirmay Nov. 20, 1951 2,603,958 St. Pierre July 22, 1952 2,677,257 Jarvis May 4, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 253,692 Great Britain lune 24, 1926 520,417 Great Britain Apr. 23, 1940 

